Practice Management

The Court of Appeal has upheld a ruling that Yorkshire law firm Raleys was negligent in its handling of a claim under the government compensation scheme for ex-miners suffering from vibration white finger.

An internet banner advertisement by an Essex law firm which showed a woman’s face above the slogan “awarded £40,000 after cosmetic surgery – claim now” was misleading, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has ruled.

Preventing mortgage lenders from claiming on solicitors’ compulsory indemnity insurance will “destroy high street conveyancing”, Law Society chief executive Des Hudson has said, in a wide-ranging speech on the state of the profession.

Solicitors must not exploit clients’ lack of knowledge about wills for their own advantage, the SRA has warned. In a newly issued guidance note, the regulator said clients should not be led to believe that appointing a solicitor as executor was “essential or indeed the norm”.

Yorkshire Building Society has said it has “no present intention” of reconsidering a ban it has decided to impose on firms with unrated indemnity insurers, even though the Solicitors Regulation Authority last week decided against one.

The Law Society’s ruling council will today consider whether a network of “harassment advisers” should be set up to crack down on bullying at Chancery Lane.

Two comparison websites have become the latest to sign up to the groundbreaking good practice standards pioneered by the Legal Services Consumer Panel.

The SRA has acknowledged that the majority of responses received to its consultation on banning unrated indemnity insurers favoured a ban. Of 31 responses, 18 were in favour and 13 against.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority has unveiled plans to remove the requirement that firms have their client accounts reviewed by an independent accountant and submit an annual accountant’s report.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority has called for the minimum level of indemnity cover firms must obtain to be cut to £500,000. The existing limits are £2m for traditional partnerships, or £3m for incorporated practices.